Fire Emblem Awakening: Twice the Fun!
by Archangel's Blade
Summary: One sunny day, Gwyn and Connor wake up in a field with no memories surrounded by three people who will become an important part of their lives. Now the Shepherds have two tacticians, two brilliant minds, but can they change the future together, or are they doomed from the start? Retelling of FE:A with two Avatars, and the two year time skip is expanded upon.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: So here we are with yet another story. I'm sorry to those of you who want the SAO story to continue, but I haven't felt like working on that one, especially since I've been working on this one. I started this one before the SAO one, and finally got to the point where I was comfortable typing it out and posting it here. This features two Avatars, Gwyn and Connor, but the main PoV will be Connor's with the occasional insert from Gwyn's PoV. I actually started with with two year time gap when I originally started writing this, but eventually I ran out of ideas and came back to the beginning, so I could start posting this. I just finished this chapter today, so I figured I would post it now rather than later. I'm sure you guys want something to read while I work on the rest of this and SAO.

* * *

Chapter One- The Verge of History

(Connor PoV)

"Chrom, we have to do _something_ ," a young-sounding feminine voice says worriedly. My head is pounding, and even trying to open my eyes is a monumental effort.

"What do you propose we do?" a deeper, more familiar voice asks the first.

"I… I dunno..." the first person says, unsure. Then, unable to help myself, I let out a groan, the headache getting worse by the second. I manage to open my eyes and see a blonde girl and a blue-haired man blocking the sun from my face.

"At least one of you is awake now," the blue-haired one says.

"Hey there!" the girl says, smiling brightly.

"There are better places than to take a nap than on the ground, you know. Give me your hand." He pulls me up, and I see that I am a few inches taller than he is. "Are you alright?"

I glance around, taking note of the unconscious girl, who seemed somehow familiar to me, and a blue knight watching me carefully. "…Y-yeah. Thanks, Chrom."

"Ah, then you know who I am?" he asks.

I shake my head. "No. While the name sounds familiar, I only heard the girl say you name as I woke up." He nods in understanding.

"Well, it seems you have me at a disadvantage. What's your name?" Chrom asks.

"It's… it's…" I have to stop and think for a moment, but I still can't come up with anything, and trying to remember makes my head hurt. "I, ah, can't seem to remember. Where are we, exactly?"

"…You don't know your own name?" The man looks confused. Before he can continue, I hear a soft groan from below me and to my left. I look down, and see the girl's eyes flutter open. She looks around briefly, and sees me. I offer her my hand, and pull her up when she takes it.

"C-Connor!"

"Is that my name? I ask. She nods.

"You don't remember your name?" I nod my head. "Do you at least remember me? I'm Gwyn, your sister! …Actually, I can't remember any more than that, now that I think about it," she adds after a moment of thought.

"Hey, I've heard of this! It's called amnesia!" the blonde girls says excitedly.

"It's called a load of pegasus dung," the knight in blue says skeptically. "We're supposed to believe that you can remember your brother, but nothing else?"

"B-but it's the truth!" I exclaim.

"Yes, I can't seem to remember much of anything," Gwyn adds.

"..What if it IS true, Frederick? We can't just leave them here, alone and confused. What sort of Shepards would we be then?"

"All the same, milord, I must emphasize caution. 'Twould not do to let wolves into our flock."

"Right then—" Chrom starts. "We'll take them back to town and sort this out there."

"Wait just one moment. Do I get a say in this?" Gwyn and I say at the same time.

""Peace, friends—I promise we'll hear all you have to say back in town. Now, come on."

* * *

"What will you do with us? Are we to be your prisoners?"

Chrom laughs heartily. "You'll be free to go as soon as we establish that you're no enemy of Ylisse," he answers.

"Is that where we are? Ylisse?" I ask.

"You've never heard of the Halidom? Ha! Someone pay this actor. He plays quite the fool! The furrowed brow is especially convincing…"

"Hey! Gwyn says indignantly.

"Frederick, please. This land is known as the Halidom of Ylisse. Our ruler, Emmeryn, is called the Exalt. I suppose introductions are in order… My name is Chrom—but then, you already knew that. The delicate one here is my little sister, Lissa."

"I am NOT delicate! …Hmph! Ignore my brother, please. He can be a bit thick, sometimes. But you're lucky the Shepards found you. Brigands would've been a rude awakening!" Lissa, the girl says. Chrom is about to say something, but she interrupts him "Chrom, look! The town!" We look in the direction she's pointing, and see a village engulfed in flame.

"Damn it! The town is ablaze! Those blasted brigands, no doubt… Frederick, Lissa! Quickly!"

"What about these two?" Frederick asks.

"Unless they're on fire as well, it can wait!" the lord says harshly.

"Aptly put, milord," Frederick says, ignoring the harshness of his prince's voice.

"Let's go already!" Lissa says, dashing off ahead of the others. Chrom and Frederick rush to catch up, leaving Connor and Gwyn by themselves.

"But what about..." I say, noticing the weapon at my side, a finely crafted steel sword. I see Gwyn pulling a tome out of her long robes, which look exactly the same as mine, strangely enough. It's an Elthunder tome. "We need to help them."

"Yeah," she agrees. I nod, and we run after them, weapons drawn.

"…e have to stop them!" Lissa tells Chrom.

"Don't worry—after today, these bandits won't be bothering anyone ever again…" the lord says darkly as we come to a stop beside them. Frederick gives me a brief, curious look before returning his attention to the cautiously approaching bandits, who scatter when he looks at them.

"You followed us? Why?" Chrom asks me.

"I… I'm not certain myself. But both of us are armed, and we know our way around a fight, if you'll have us," I say. He nods.

"Of course—strength in numbers. Just stay close!" the lord tells us. "Remember, we face practiced thieves and murderers. They will grand us no quarter. It's kill or be killed."

We all take up fighting stances, and Chrom looks over at me. "So, Connor, I see you use a sword. Is it—Wait, is that a tome? …You know magic, Gwyn?"

"I… believe so? I suppose I should check…" she answers, flipping open the tome. Chrom involuntarily takes a step back.

"You believe so? Perhaps I'll just keep a few paces behind you for the time being…" the lord says worriedly.

"No, I can control it, I'm sure," she says placatingly. "Now, how did this work again? Ah, yes…" Thunder crackles ominously at her fingertips.

Together, Chrom and I charge forward at a group of three bandits. Chrom cuts one down, slashing through the man's axe and cleaving him in two. I exchange a quick set of blows with another bandit, but as with Chrom, weapon quality shines through and I break his sword and finish the disarmed bandit with a stab to the chest.

I look over at Chrom to congratulate him, and horror fills my body as I see the third bandit about to strike at the lord. I yank at my sword, which is stuck in the bandit's chest to try and assist him, but the sword is stuck fast. I prepare to tackle the man as Chrom turns to block it, but the brigand suddenly drops dead, a massive hole in his head, accompanied by the crack of thunder an instant later.

"Thanks!" he calls back, before more bandits appear. I see several mages mixed in as well, and Chrom and I dive for cover behind some fruit stands. Gwyn catches up and exchanges fire with them, and while she kills them, she is scored several times and gets a bad burn on her exposed hand.

Fredrick rides up, the way clear for him, with Lissa mounted behind him. She hops off his horse and pulls out a staff with a blue gem attached to the top.

"Hold still, Gwyn, and give me your hand," the young princess says. Gwyn whimpers as she takes her hand, and looks like she's about to pass out from the pain. The skin around the bird is charred, and I can see part of the bone exposed. I feel a flash of worry for my sister, but Lissa touches the staff to her hand, whispering, "Heal," and the staff glows bright blue. When the light fades, the burn is gone, and Gwyn looks much better.

"I may not be able to attack like Chrom, but when you get injured, I'll be the one the one stitching your bones back together, care of my trusty staff!" I hear Lissa say. "Just tell me where to go, Gwyn."

Several minutes later, it looks like a large majority of the bandits are dead. I felt bad for killing them, but I quashed those feelings to deal with them later. Right now, it was us or them, and I wasn't about to let them make the choice for me.

"Still with us, Connor, Gwyn?" Chrom asks as we finish with the last wave of bandits, leaving us with only three left, including their leader. The other two I dismissed; their weapons were weak, and they weren't likely to hit Chrom or me anyways. Their leader was the problem. His weapon was of reasonable quality, and he looked to be a skilled fighter.

"Hmm… It's strange. Here on the battlefield, I can… well, see things," I say, Gwyn nodding next to me.

"See things? Like what?" the blue-haired lord asks.

"The enemy's strength, their weaponry, the flow of battle… Connor and I must have studied this somewhere," Gwyn replies.

"So you're saying you can size the enemy up at a glance?" Chrom says incredulously.

"Yes, it would seem so. And perhaps more, if we apply ourselves…" I trail off, trying to remember things, but a group of bandits bursts out of the buildings, separating us from their leader and charge us.

A few minutes later the attackers are all dead, leaving all four of us alive, but out of breath.

"Are you two all right? Don't rush into danger," Chrom warns Gwyn and me.

"I'm fine, Chrom, don't worry," I say. To my left, Gwyn fires off her Elthunder tome towards the remaining mage. He tries to dodge, but it blows a chunk out of his chest and kills him. The leader and his remaining man wisely take cover.

"You've lent us your strength, and that makes you a friend. Having an ally by my side gives me courage," Chrom says, patting me on the back. "That goes for you too, Gwyn." More mages file out from a side street just in front of the last two men, forcing us to take cover.

"Thank you, but I think there's more to it than that," I say. The blue-haired man gives me a perplexed look.

"What do you mean?"

Gwyn answers for me. "If I'm not mistaken, there's a tactical advantage to fighting side by side… it's fuzzy… wait, yes; working in pairs improves strength, defense, speed… yes, yes, I'm sure of it!" she exclaims, waiting a brief moment before popping out of her cover and killing another mage. The others duck back into cover and I take the opportunity to rush them, Chrom and Frederick right on my heels. We overwhelm and kill them in seconds.

As Frederick is finishing up with the last mage, Chrom and I charge the leader.

"Here, sheepy, sheepy! Come to the slaughter!" the man yells, cackling manically.

"You die today!" Chrom snarls, lunging towards him. The exchange a series of rapid blows before the lord disengages with a flourish. I jump in, not giving the leader a chance to breathe. I swing as fast and as hard as I can, keeping him on the defensive, but I trip on a rock and lose my balance, giving him the opening he needs to disarm me and send me toppling to the floor.

"I am General Garrick of Plegia, and you shall feel my—" A sword sprouts from his chest. He looks at it with confusion; it's Chrom's sword. Garrick coughs, spraying blood everywhere. I scramble out from underneath him, and Chrom pulls his blade out with a sickening crunch. "Curse you, Ylisseans. You will… feel… Plegia's wrath…"

I get up shakily, my brush with death all to close for comfort. I retrieve my sword after which Chrom slaps me on the back.

"Well, that's the end of that," I say, trying to regain my composure. "By the way, what's Plegia?"

"You don't know? Your robes are from Plegia, after all," Chrom says. I look just as confused as Gwyn when they close in on us. "They're our neighboring country to the west. They've been trying to provoke war with us for years now. Emm is the only reason we're still at peace. If they keep sending bandits our way, though, and we might be forced to confront them…" Chrom trails off.

"Lucky for the town, we were close. But holy wow, you two! Swords, sorcery AND tactic! Is there anything you can't do?" the princess gushes. Around us, the villagers begin to gather.

"You're certainly no helpless victims, that's for sure," the prince comments while Frederick dismounts from his horse.

"Indeed. Perhaps you might even be capable of an explanation for how you two got here?" he asks. Both of us shake our heads.

"I understand your skepticism, Sir Frederick. And I cannot explain why only some knowledge has returned to us," my sister says. "But please, believe us. We have shard all we know."

"You fought to save Ylissean lives. My heart says that's enough," Chrom says.

"And your mind, milord? Will you not heed its council as well?"

Chrom sighs. "Frederick, the Shepards could use people with their talent. We've brigands and unruly neighbors, all looking to bloody our soil. Would you really have us lose such able tacticians? Besides, I believe their story, odd as it may be."

"Th-thank you, Chrom," I stammer. Next to me, Gwyn blushes as he looks at her.

"So how about it? Will you two join us?"

"We would be honoured," Gwyn replies. Chrom smiles, and turns towards Frederick and Lissa.

"Now, if we want to get to Ylisstol before evening tomorrow, we had better get going," the lord says. We all nod, and begin to walk out of the town.

"Milord, please! You must stay the night! We are simple folk of simple means, but we would gladly toast your valor with a feast!" an older villager, looking to be in his fifties or sixties says.

"A most generous offer, sir, and no doubt your hospitality would be grand… But I'm afraid we must hurry back to Ylisstol," Frederick replies.

"Dark meat only for me, medium well, and no salt in the soup. I simply—wait, what?! We're not staying?! But, Frederick, it's almost dark!"

"When night falls, we'll camp. Eat off the land, make our bed of twigs and the like. I believe several days ago you mention 'getting used to this?'"

"Frederick? Sometimes, I hate you," Lissa grumbles.

"You've quite the stern lieutenant there," Gwyn comments.

"Yeah, well, 'stern' is one name for it… I can think of a few others!" the princess snarks.

"Frederick only smiles when he's about to bring down the axe," Chrom says with a light laugh.

"Duly noted," I say, glancing over at the knight.

"*Ahem* you do realise that I AM still present?" he asks dryly, glaring daggers at the both of them.

"Oh, we realise." Frederick is silent for a moment as he looks at the prince and princess. Then, he smiles. It's a cheerful smile, but the looks it brings to Chrom and Lissa tell me otherwise.

"Milord remains as amusing as ever. Now then, shall we be going?"

"All right, all right. Ready to go, you two?" he asks Gwyn and I. We nod. "Then let's go. The capital isn't far."

* * *

A/N: I really hoped you enjoyed this chapter. I have big plans for this story, and already with what I've written(94 pages in a notebook, and I'm not even a quarter done yet!) it's huge. You guys are in for a long(and hopefully fun) ride this time, and I'll see you in the next chapter.

~Archangel's Blade


	2. Chapter 2

So, I know I said that this chapter would be up a while ago, but it didn't happen. I kinda just lost all motivation to write, by which I mean I started reading Game of Thrones and I got obsessed with it, so I stopped writing for a while. Anyways, here the chapter is, after like three or four months of waiting. Again, sorry for not getting around to this sooner, it's just when I get really into something it kinda just takes over for a while.

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Chapter 2- Unwelcome Change

"I told you—it's getting dark already!" Lissa complains. "…Eeh! And now the bugs are out! Noisy, disgusting bugs that buzz around and crawl all over and bite you when—Agh! Won goph in mah mouph! Bleh!" Lissa spits and tries to get out whatever bug had made the unfortunate mistake of flying into her mouth. Chrom and I both burst into laughter, and Gwyn only barely manages to keep a straight face when the younger girl glares at us. If looks could kill,, I'm certain Chrom and I would have died on the spot.

"Aw, come on, Lissa. Hardship builds character. Want to help me gather firewood?" Chrom asks, trying to regain his composure as Lissa continues to spit in a vain attempt to get the bug out of her mouth.

"Yeeeeeeeeuck! ...I think I swallowed it…" Lissa says with a shudder. "I'll pass on finding firewood, thanks. I think I've built _quite_ enough character for one day!"

"We should probably think about food; I don't know about you, but I'm starving," I say. Gwyn 'mhm's' in agreement.

"Yes, I think some hunting and gathering is in order. Now, who wants to clear a campsite?" the older man asks. Gwyn and I both raise our hands. Chrom volunteers to gather firewood, and, albeit reluctantly, Frederick leaves to find food.

While my sister and I work to clear an acceptable campsite, Lissa tries to build a small fire with the sticks in the immediate vicinity. Very unsuccessfully, I might add. "Do you need help?" I offer, walking over to the girl.

"I…" She hesitates for a moment. "…Yeah." I squat next to her and examine the pile of sticks critically.

"Well, it looks like you forgot kindling. Do you have a knife?" I ask after the quick examination. She nods and hands me a small paring knife.

I take one of the sticks and scrape shavings off of it. A minute or two later, we have enough kindling for a fire. "Okay, now show me how you were striking the flint and steel." I notice that she's doing it backwards. "I think the problem is that you're doing it the wrong way around. Try switching it."

She does as I say, and a few attempts later we have a decent fire going. About ten minutes later, Chrom returns with more sticks to fuel the fire, and just in time, too; the fire we'd built was nearly done for. We add some sticks and wait for Frederick to return.

Another half an hour later, the armored man returns with a small bear slung over his horse's back. Chrom and I help him get the bear down, and the two men begin to butcher the animal.

I take the meat they strip off of it and take it to the fire, where Gwyn is showing Lissa how to construct a spit.

I load some meat onto the newly constructed spit some minutes later, and we all wait for it to cook, although I notice that Frederick is slightly green.

~An awesome line~

"Mmm… It's been too long since I last had bear meat. Delicious! … What's wrong, Lissa? Dig in," Chrom says as he grabs another piece of meat from the spit.

"Pass! …Gods, couldn't you spear us an animal _normal_ people eat for once? I mean, come on! Who eats bear?" Lissa complains. "You're meddling with the food chain. Right, you guys? …Uh, Connor? …Gwyn?"

Somewhat on accident, I end up ignoring Lissa, and so does Gwyn; I was so hungry, it was like I hadn't eaten for days, and Gwyn was acting just the same. The princess sighs.

"I suppose a person would enjoy just about anything if they don't have any memories…"

"Just eat it, Lissa," Chrom tells his sister. "Meat is meat."

"Since when does mean smell like old boots? Wait, I take it back—old boots smell better!" the young girl snaps back.

"Every experience makes us stronger, milady. Even those we don't enjoy," Frederick says sagely, though as I notice, he hasn't eaten any either, and looks sick.

"Really?" Lissa asks, rounding on the poor older man. "Then why don't I see YOU eating, Frederick?"

The man knows he's been backed into a corner. "Me? Oh, well, I'm not hungry. I… I had quite a large lunch! Yes, quite," he stammers. I grin as I reach for another peace.

"Well, more for us, I guess," I say. Chrom and Gwyn both nod, and reach for the last piece at the same time. We have a short stare off, but Chrom backs off quickly, realizing perhaps that his would not go well for him.

"Far be it for me to deny the hungry food," he says in an attempt to save face. Lissa giggles, and when I glance at her I realize that since she's a healer, she might know a cure.

"Hey, Lissa?" She looks over at me. "You don't happen to know of a cure for amnesia, do you?"

"No, sorry, Connor," she says. I should've known better. The look on her face made me feel bad. "I can always ask Maribelle when we get back to Ylisstol. She's been studying healing magic much longer than I have, so maybe she knows something."

"Thanks, Lissa."

"We should be getting to bed, I think," Frederick says, pulling a few bedrolls out of his saddlebags. There are only four, I notice. He tosses one to Chrom, Lissa, Gwyn and I, and then grabs a horse blanket from another bag.

We all get into the bedrolls, and a few minutes later, everyone is asleep, except for Gwyn and I. "Have you remembered anything yet, Gwyn?" I ask as I roll over to face her. She shakes her head.

"Not really… only a few scattered memories of you… Studying and the like," she replies. "Nothing major."

"Same here. What are we going to do?" I wonder aloud, panic welling in my chest as I realize the enormity of the situation we're in. No memories, and traveling with 'shepherds' in full battle armor. "What if we never remember _anything_?" Gwyn grabs my hand with hers, gripping it tightly. Her touch soothes me somewhat.

"Then we'll make new ones. And who knows, maybe we lost our memory for a reason? Maybe we don't want to remember," my sister says. "Point is, right now we can't do anything about it, so what's the point of worrying about it? And in the meantime, we have each other."

"Thanks, sis," I say, turning and looking up at the stars. I hear her do the same thing but her hand stays in mine. I fall asleep a few minutes later, my exhaustion from the day's events catching up with me and excited to see my first city the next day.

~An Awesome Line~

(Chrom PoV)

"…Huh?" I wake up suddenly. I can't explain it, but I feel a sense of imminent doom, and strangely enough, my Brand is tingling.

Lissa sits up nearby with a yawn. "What's wrong, big brother?" she asks. I shrug.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, but… something is amiss…" I murmur quietly.

"Define 'something'," she says, hands on her hips in concern.

"I'm not sure… I think I'll have a look around," I answer, turning away to walk into the forest.

"Not alone you won't!" Lissa exclaims quietly, following after me. "I'm coming too."

I smile, give her a hug and we walk into the forest. "Thanks, Lissa."

After a few minutes of walking, I notice that something is gravely wrong. My Brand is itching almost unbearably.

"It sure is dark… And quiet. Where did the crickets go?" my sister wonders aloud, taking notice of the sudden silence.

"Something is wrong here…" I begin. Suddenly, the ground erupts into an earthquake, sending me reeling and Lissa onto the ground, screaming as she falls.

"Chrom!"

"Gods, what-" Another tremor topples me, driving the breath from my lungs. I quickly get back up, helping my sister up in the process. "What is this madness?! Lissa, stay close!"

I spin around, looking for a source to the tremors. I see trees begin to topple in the distance, and the ground opens up in their wake. Fear fills my chest. "Lissa, run."

"Huh?" she turns towards me, and freezes when she looks at the sight in front of us.

"I mean it! Go!" I yell, pushing her in the opposite direction from the cataclysmic event. She begins running but turns in the direction that the crack in the earth is headed. I spot a clearing in the forest a ways away that is unaffected by the earth-shattering event. "Hey! This way!"

We soon reach the clearing I saw, and stop to catch our breath.

 _I sure hope Gwyn and the others are all right,_ I think, panting and trying to get my bearings.

"Chrom, what _is_ that?!" Lissa exclaims, pointing at the sky. I turn and see some sort of… eye… appear in the sky. Two bodies slide out of it and fall to the ground. I see their outline stand up, and two red dots appear where their eyes would be.

"Lissa, you'd better stand back," I warn, drawing Falchion from its sheath. The two men, armed with axes, walk into the clearing. After a few seconds of staring at us, one charges me with an overhead strike. I sprint forward and disembowel him. I pause, expecting him to drop, and turn my head to look at my foe. I don't expect to see the man's red eyes staring back at me. For a moment, I'm too stunned to react, but when he raises his axe to attack, my body bursts into action. I shove him as hard as I can with my shoulder, sending him flying, and then leap into the air, stabbing him as I land. The man fades into purplish smoke with a groan, and I breathe a sigh of relief.

Then Lissa screams. I spin around and see the other creature—for they were certainly not men—looming over her.

Before I can even think of moving, a blur of a person races past me, intercepting the strike that would have killed my sister at the last second. I gape in amazement at the person's speed.

"Help!" he shouts, struggling to hold back the blow.

"…Right," I say dumbly, dashing forward to cut the thing in half. At the last second, Lissa's mysterious rescuer throws it off balance and meets my slash with one of his own. This one fades into purple smoke as well. "That was quite an entrance. What's your name?"

"Milord! Milady! Are you hurt?" Frederick asks frantically as he and the other two burst into the clearing.

"Frederick! Gwyn!" To my surprise, Lissa runs over to the female tactician and begins sobbing into her shoulder; Gwyn awkwardly pats the younger girl on the back.

(Connor PoV)

"Are such horrific creatures commonplace in these lands?" I ask the prince. He shakes his head.

"They're not from Ylisse, I promise you that," he answers.

"Is anyone injured?" Frederick asks. All of us shake our heads. "Thanks the gods."

"Thank the masked man who saved me! If it wasn't for him, I'd be… Hey, where'd he go?" Lissa wonders, looking around in a circle. He's gone.

"We can worry about him later, AFTER we put these… things… to the blade. Eyes open now," the knight warns us. "We know nothing about this enemy."

"Right. I do know that they are not fazed by anything other than a killing blow," Chrom adds. We all nod, and proceed into a nearby clearing chock full of the beasts. I spot some crumbling buildings scattered about the now battlefield.

"Hmm… Are those…" I begin.

"Abandoned forts, yes," Frederick supplies. My mind begins to churn with the possibilities and I see the gears turning in Gwyn's head as well.

"We should take shelter in them whenever possible; No doubt they will offer distinct advantages in battle," she says. That said, I converse with her to come up with a plan.

"Okay. Chrom, you come go with Gwyn to the fort over there," I say, pointing Chrom to a fort on the southern end of the battlefield. "I'll run out and get the attention of as many as I can. Frederick, you take Lissa and do the same thing with the eastern one."

"Milord, I must protest. What if these two are using this as an opportunity to kill you? We still have not—"

"Frederick, stop. They've had plenty of opportunities to kill me _and_ Lissa as well, and be gone before you would even know," Chrom says in our defense. Frederick opens his mouth to argue, but the younger man cuts him off again. "I will brook no argument for this. Now, do as Connor says, and draw some of those things with you."

Frederick gives Gwyn and I a death glare worthy of the gods before following our orders. Chrom follows Gwyn to the fort while I run out into the open, trying to draw the attention of about ten of the dead… things. Not quite dead, but still not alive. Like they were dead and then risen from the grave.

"Hey, you ugly idiots! You want something to fight? Well, come and get some!" I yell, brandishing my sword. Their gazes snap to me, and they burst into a sprint at me. I turn and run as fast as I can into the fort, skidding to a stop once inside to confront them with Chrom at my side.

The narrow doorway prevents more than one from entering at a time, making it simple work, especially with my sister up on top of the fort blasting them while also attracting more with the loud thunderclaps emitted by her tome.

During a break in the fighting, I see two figures appear out of the forest.

"Captain Chrom! Wait! I'm coming! …Agh, I know I shouldn'ta left 'em. All right, you ash-faced freaks! Which one of ya wants to try my lance on for size first? I know just the spot for it: shoved right up your—"

"Hold, milady!" the second figure exclaims when he catches up the first.

The rider is so startled, she can't find words, just staring at the man mutely.

"Life may be long, but attraction is fleeting! Would you leave me in your sweet dust? Leave war to the warriors, dear bird! A beauty such as yourself need wage only love," the man declares, bowing to the girl. She looks very confused. If I had to guess, I would say that this was their first meeting.

"…the hell are you?" she asks finally.

The man chuckles. "Is the lady intrigued? Of course you are—it's only natural. I," he says proudly, "am myth and legend. I am he who strides across history's greatest stage! The man who puts the 'arch' in 'archer'! My name, dear lady, is Vi—"

"Sorry Ruffles—no time for this. Onward!" the rider says, urging her mount forward.

"Virion," the man exclaims. "…Er, my name. It's Virion. W-wait! Where are you going? Pray, at least tell me your name!"

She once again reigns in her horse. "I'm Sully… And I'm a Shepard."

"'Sully!' How divine! A starkly beautiful name, as befits its owner, truly," the man praises. "Will you marry me, my dearest Sully?"

"Will I what now? Oh wait, I get it… This is a joke. And when I put my booth through your face—that's the punchline," Sully replies, glaring murderously at Virion. I decide Chrom and I should introduce ourselves, so we walk over.

"If you want to be technical, it's the 'kickline'," I say once we're closer to them. The knight looks over at e, a little surprised, but relaxes when she sees Chrom.

"I realize my manly figure and noble bearing can be overwhelming. 'Tis common. So please, don't feel pressured to answer right a—"

"How's THIS," she kicks him in the chest hard from atop her horse, interrupting his monolog, "for an answer?!" Virion goes down hard, rolling a few feet away. He gets up with an obvious wince.

"G-goodness, but those shapely legs certainly can kick, can't they…" he mumbles to himself. "P-please, milady! Allow me to accompany you, at least! Mine is a cold, empty world without you. I shall be your most willing servant, and you, in turn, will give my life purpose…" the archer trails off hopefully. Sully sighs loudly.

"Fine… Anything to shut you up," she says after a moment of deliberation. Chrom and I barely contain our grins. "…What? Stop staring at me like that!" Chrom and I wisely find our gazes lock onto the nearest tree, which is suddenly the most interesting thing in the world.

"Anyways, Sully, Virion, go help Frederick and Lissa with those… things over there. I think Chrom, Gwyn and I can handle the ones left over here. They nod, and Sully pulls Virion onto her horse.

"No funny business, Ruffles, or I'll kick your teeth in," the knight warns. The archer scoffs.

"I would never!" Sully shrugs and urges her horse into a gallop, quickly disappearing from my sight.

We are forced to retreat back inside the fort as another wave of the dead appear from where Sully and Virion came from, including one head and shoulders above the rest with a large throwing axe on its shoulder.

"Oh, hell," Chrom mutters under his breath. They all charge us at once, and Chrom and I cut them down as fast as they get through the door, but even with Gwyn raining death on them from above, it's almost too much for us to handle.

For a second, everything is calm, and we think they're all dead. Then, the hulking monster I saw earlier charges through the doorway, its shoulder taking down part of the doorway with it.

It immediately starts swinging wildly at Chrom, who is quickly forced back by the speed of its attacks. I swing my sword at it, the blade biting deep, but it gets stuck in the monster, hardly even wounding it. Gwyn throws bolt after bolt at it, to essentially no effect.

After a couple seconds, it disarms Chrom and sends him sprawling. His sword clatters to the ground next to me, and without hesitation, I pick it up.

 _"He who would be the vassal of the Destroyer. Take my sword and with it, change your destiny. Save my son, and help him prevent the Awakening of the Fell Dragon."_

I almost stagger in surprise when I hear the voice, but I maintain my balance and use Chrom's sword to cut the monster almost entirely in half. It fades into purple mist, and my sword clatters to the ground. I pull Chrom to his feet and hand him his sword, then pick up my own. I look back at Chrom, and the look of surprise and shock catches me off guard.

"What?" I ask, sheathing my sword.

"You… you used Falchion…" he mutters.

"Am I not supposed to? Sorry, I didn't even think about it, I just… acted," I say in an attempt to explain myself. I wasn't sure why he was so shocked, but there was probably a good reason.

"No, it… you shouldn't be capable of wielding Falchion. Only a few select people are capable of such a feat, and otherwise it's as dull as a butter knife," he says. "So you must be related to me somehow."

 _"No, my son. You are my only descendant, your sisters not included. No, I have only granted Connor the ability to wield Falchion in hopes that you can change destiny. Remember this, my son."_

"O-oh… that's… Naga herself just spoke to me," the prince breathes wonderingly.

"Earth to Chrom, there could be more enemies and we need to regroup with Frederick to help them finish up, especially if there are more of the giant ones," my sister says after hopping down from her perch. "We can worry about whoever was talking to us later."

Chrom nods distantly, and the three of us run to the fort where Frederick is supposed to be. There are still ten of the things left, so Chrom and I charge up behind them, killing two before the rest can react. Several of them turn to face us and that gives the two knights the chance to psh the others back, killing two more in the process. After that, the six of us make quick work of the remainder. The man from earlier reappears from the forest and stands next to Lissa.

"It seems all the creatures are vanquished. This young man took care of the others," says Frederick. The blue haired man says nothing.

"Um, I never got to thank you… for before," Lissa says nervously. "So… thank you. You were very brave."

"You saved my sister's life. My name is Chrom. Might I ask yours?" the lord asks, offering his hand to shake. He hesitates for a moment, then takes Chrom's hand. I might be seeing things, but I think I see a tear slide down his cheek, almost invisible.

"You may call me Marth," he says after a second.

"Marth? After the Hero King of old? You certainly fought like a hero. Where did you learn your way with a sword?"

"I'm not here to talk about me," Marth says curtly. Chrom looks taken aback. "This world teeters at the brink of a horrible calamity. What you saw tonight was but a prelude. You have been warned." The swordsman begins to walk away, leaving the six of us standing there, confused.

"Huh? What's teetering where now? Hey, wait!" Lissa calls. Marth ignores her, and disappears into the gloom.

"Not much for conversation, is he?" I ask jokingly, trying to ease the tension. I file his warning into the back of my head for later and nod to Gwyn, seeing that she did the same.

"It appears his skills lie elsewhere. I wager we'll hear his name again…" Frederick trails off for a moment, looking in the direction Marth had left. "But for now, I'm more concerned about the capital. We should make haste."

~An Awesome Line~

(Lucina PoV)

I left abruptly, emotions threatening to overcome me. I had thought seeing my father wouldn't bother me, but I was very wrong. I found a decent camp site and built a fire, finding it increasingly difficult to hold back my tears.

After eating a small meal, I unroll my sleeping roll and get in it. I lay there, trying to find sleep for several hours, but try as I might, it eludes me. Rolling onto my back, I stare at the star filled sky, and let my emotions overcome me. The sky blurs as tears break loose, and the enormity of my task looms over me.

I also wonder where my friends are, and if they were even here yet. Naga had said that they probably wouldn't arrive at the same time, and that there was a small chance they could end up years ahead in the future, or even past. It was even possible for them to only have gone back a few weeks or months and be stuck in the future with Grima.

After a few hours I sink into a somewhat restful sleep, dreaming of a brighter future than the one I had departed mere hours ago.

~An Awesome Line~

(Connor PoV)

"So this is Ylisstol, capital of Ylisse… I've never seen so many people!" I say in awe as we walk through the front gates of the city. Gwyn gasps, eyes wide and trying to take everything in at once.

"Thank the gods that the capital was spared the chaos we encountered. I see no evidence of the great quake; it must've been limited to the forest." Frederick sighs in relief.

"Well, that's a relief," Lissa comments. Suddenly, an old man points ahead of us, far up the main street. I follow his finger in the direction of his pointing, and see a contingent of soldiers surrounding a regal figure on a massive horse.

"Look! The Exalt has come to see us!" the villager yells. Cheers go up throughout the street. She is one of the most beautiful people I've ever seen, and her smile exudes a sense of peace and serenity. All the townsfolk bow in reverence.

"The Exalt is your ruler, yes?" I ask, glancing back at Chrom.

"Yeah, he answers. I go back to observing the Exalt. I notice the people crowding around the soldiers.

"Is it safe for her to walk among commoners like this?" I ask with some concern.

"The Exalt is a symbol of peace—Ylisse's most prized quality," Frederick states. "Long ago, at the dawn of our age, the fell dragon tried to destroy the world. But the first Exalt joined forces with the divine dragon and laid the beast low. Exalt Emmeryn reminds us all of the peace we fought for then."

"With Plegia poking at our borders, the people need her. She's a calming presence, when some might otherwise call for war," Chrom adds.

"Then the Ylissean people are lucky to have her indeed," I say, viewing her in a whole new light.

"She's also the best big sister anyone could ask for!" Lissa says brightly.

"Yes, I imagine she… Wait, what?" I say, coming to a realization. "She's your… But wouldn't that make you and Chrom…"

"The prince and princess of the realm, yes," Frederick finishes for me.

"You said you were 'Shepherds'!" Gwyn exclaims. Chrom shrugs.

"And so we are… in a manner of speaking," he replies. "We just have a LOT of sheep."

"C-Chrom… I mean, Prince Chrom! Sire! Forgive our dreadful manners!" she stammers, bowing. I follow her lead and we bow at a near ninety degree angle at the waist. Chrom makes us both stand up.

"Just Chrom is fine. I've never been much for formalities," he says.

"The prince and princess… That explains why Frederick tolerates all the teasing, eh?" I joke, getting a chuckle from Gwyn, Chrom and Lissa. Even Frederick lets out a small grin.

"Indeed. Oh, the sacrifices I make for the realm…" he sighs dramatically, allowing himself the small smile. Then, with a clatter of hooves audible even over the din of the city, Emmeryn and her guards turn around and head back to the castle.

"It looks like Emm is returning to the palace. Would you like to meet her?" Chrom asks. Gwyn's eyes light up with an almost child-like glee.

"You bet I would! She's the first royal I've ever met!" she says, hopping up and down

"What about us?" Chrom asks, sound a little hurt.

"You weren't royal when I met you, you were just shepherds, so it doesn't count," my sister says dismissively. I almost cringe.

"B-but!" the lord splutters, but she's already gone, headed to the palace and leaving the rest of us behind.

~An Awesome Line~

Once we enter the palace, Chrom leads us up to the main throne room, where Emmeryn is just settling into the throne. Lissa dashes across the room and crashes into her sister, hugging her tightly. "I missed you, Emm!" Lissa exclaims. The Exalt smiles happily and hugs her back.

"Welcome home, Lissa, Chrom," she says once the princess lets her go. "Oh, and good day, Frederick. How fared you all?"

"Well—" Chrom takes a deep breath before continuing. "We shouldn't have any bandit problems for a while."

Emmeryn nods appreciatively. "Wonderful. And our people?"

"Safe as can be, Emm. But we still need to watch the borders. The brigands crossed over from Plegia," the prince replies Emmeryn nods again, and one of her bodyguards, a knight in extravagant brass armor steps forward.

"Forgive me, milord. My pegasus knights should have intercepted them," she says. Frederick shakes his head immediately.

"No, Captain Phila." Ah, so that was her name. "Your knights' primary duty is here with the Exalt," he continues.

"And besides, we had plenty of help!" Lissa adds excitedly.

"Ah, you speak of your companions?" The Exalt turns her attention to us, smiling at us warmly.

"This is Connor and Gwyn. The fought bravely with us against the brigands," Chrom tells her. Emmeryn gracefully extends her hand, and shaking just a little, I take her hand and shake it gently. Gwyn does the same. "I've decided to make them Shepherds."

"It seems as though Ylisse owes you a debt of gratitude, Connor, Gwyn," the Exalt says. We quickly shake our heads.

"Not at all, Your Grace."

"We were only doing what anyone would do in our place." Frederick steps forward and interrupts me before I can say anything else.

"Forgive me Your Grace, but I must speak. These two have claimed to have lost their memory, but it is only that: a claim. We cannot rule out the possibility that they are brigands themselves, or even Plegian spies," the knight says. Chrom glares heatedly at him, but he doesn't back down.

"Frederick…" Chrom growls.

"Yet you allowed thim into the castle. Do these people have your trust?" Emmeryn asks her brother.

"Yes," Chrom replies without the slightest bit of hesitation. The instant trust he gave us after just meeting us was far more than I thought possible, and it warmed my heart. "They risked their lives for our people. That's enough for me."

"Well then, you two… It seems you've earned Chrom's faith, and as such you have mine as well," Emmeryn says, her smile returning as she turns back to us.

" Milady." Gwyn and I both bow, and despite what the Exalt said, I feel Frederick's glare burning a hole in the back of my head.

"But thank you, Frederick, for your prudence, as always. Chrom and Lissa are blessed to have so tireless a guardian. I do hope they remember to mention that from time to time…" Frederick smiles in spite of himself.

"They occasionally express something akin to gratitude, Your Grace," Frederick replies, his chest puffing out a little. "Phila, I assume you've heard about the deathly creatures we've encountered?"

"Yes, milord," the captain answers. "They've been sighted all across Ylisse."

Emmeryn turns serious. "Chrom, we are about to hold council. I was hoping you would join us."

"Of course," Chrom says, following after his sister, Phila and Frederick.

Lissa pops up from behind us and grabs both of us by the arm. "I think that's our cue! C'mon, there's a place I want to show you!" she says. I look at Chrom helplessly. He just stifles a laugh and continues after the others, leaving the two of us at his sister's mercy.

* * *

Did you guys like it? If you did, let me know. Anyways, I've got the better part of the story planned out, so all that's left to do is make a few final decisions and all that's left to do is write the damn thing. Along those lines, I need to decide who the final pairing for the story will be. As you can see, the majority of the story is written form Connor's point of view, and I can't decide between Cordelia and Lucina for the final pairing, so I'm going to put up a poll on my profile that you guys can vote on. When we reach the two year pause inbetween the arcs, I'll look and whoever has the most votes will decide the final pairing. To that end, I'm going to introduce Lucina slightly earlier than normal, so that it's feasible to use some of the stuff I've already written.

~Archangel's Blade


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